Weekly column: Scorpio season, Plutonian transits, and the economics of fear

Review

“We should be getting US personal income and spending data today, but because the US lacks a properly functioning government, we are getting no such thing. This matters because the resilient middle-income consumer has kept the US from recession this year. Credit card data hints that this is still the case, but if fear of unemployment were to rise, downside risks would quickly emerge. The longer the government is shut down, the greater the role of rumor in the economy—and as bad news sells better, there is a risk that unwarranted fear gains ground in the absence of actual facts.”

—Dr. Paul Donovan, “Fearing Fear,” UBS Morning Audio, October 31, 2025.

The ongoing government shutdown delayed the release of the Commerce Department’s initial estimate of the third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP), as other data sources suggest solid economic growth in the quarter.

—Eric Revell, “Government Shutdown Blocks Key GDP Data Release – What Do The Fed’s Models Say About Economic Growth?” Fox Business, October 31, 2025.

Chocolate prices have surged nearly 30% since last Halloween due to inflation, tariffs, and a global cocoa shortage. Shoppers are shifting toward cheaper, trendier candies such as gummies and sour treats, with chocolate’s Halloween market share dropping from 52% to 44%, according to Circana.

–Luke Fountain, “Chocolate’s Reign Over Halloween Is Under Threat From Inflation, Tariffs, And High Cocoa Prices.” CNBC, October 31, 2025.

U.S. stocks hit new all-time highs across the board last week following another rate cut from the central bank, generally positive earnings reports, and a cordial trade meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. We’re coming into a generally favorable period of the year for stocks now, but with all the gains we’ve seen over the past several months, some rest may be needed to start the month of November.

European markets were mixed last week, with the FTSE seeing a fresh breakout to new all-time highs, while both the AEX and DAX sold off. Europe is still the hottest equity region year-to-date, although some of the recent weakness in the Euro could jeopardize its outperformance going into year-end.

Over in Asia and Oceania, we continue to see a meteoric rise in the Japanese Nikkei. The Shanghai Composite hit a new multi-year high before pulling back last week, too. The ASX over in Australia finished lower, however.

Precious metals saw their correction from all-time highs continue. We’re starting the 2^nd week from the highs now. Ray’s recent update on gold and silver looks to be panning out accordingly.

Cryptocurrencies struggled to sustain any sort of bid and finished lower on the week. However, it’s worth pointing out that Ethereum futures posted new lows this past week while Bitcoin did not. It’s been over three weeks since Bitcoin hit a new all-time high and roughly two months since Ethereum did.

Commodity markets saw mixed price action, with Crude Oil closing lower on the week again. However, grains saw notable rallies, and especially beans, after China agreed to buy a large portion of the crop from the U.S. The timing of this move couldn’t be better, as it looks to be lining up with the grain forecast from Wyatt Fellows’ outlook for 2026.

Short-term geocosmics

It’s Halloween today, but as geocosmic observers, we know the deeper story lies with the symbolism of Scorpio. This time of year is renowned for its thinning of the veil between the seen and unseen worlds.

There’s an extra element of intensity for this year’s Halloween, with Mars, the ruler of Scorpio, being in the sign too. That will change this upcoming week on November 4, when Mars ingresses into the sign of Sagittarius. But then, just a couple of days later, on November 6, Venus will ingress into Scorpio too. The intensity of Scorpio can be a bit much for fun-loving Venus, but her stay in this sign will only last until the end of November.

We’re fresh off a grand trine between Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn this past week, which are all in water signs currently. It happened to coincide with the Federal Reserve’s latest interest rate cut of 25 basis points, or a quarter of a percent.

The geocosmic tone shifts to more serious matters this week, however. We have a couple of hard aspects with Venus involved, as there’s a square to Jupiter on November 2 and then a square to Pluto on November 7. In between, Mars will form an opposition to Uranus, just before Uranus retrogrades back into Taurus on the same day as the square between Venus and Pluto.

These aspects add to the already profound nature of the Scorpio season, and it could come with shocking accusations or an uncomfortable breakthrough with respect to the government shutdown. Keep in mind that many Americans stand to go without numerous government-assistance programs starting this week if a deal is not reached. May we actually see some sort of civil unrest if this continues? The geocosmics at hand here lend themselves to such a possibility, although I don’t think it’s a very likely one.

Keep in mind that Mercury is in Sagittarius during this time, too, so rhetoric could reach a fever pitch. Legit grievances can even come to the surface, but will it do much good if nobody is actively listening?

Longer-term thoughts (and opinion)

“Whoever battles monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster himself. And when you look long into the abyss, the abyss also looks into you.”

—Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil

Since it’s Halloween today, and Scorpio season too, a deep dive into the symbolism and mysteries of this sign seems appropriate. I do not have any Scorpio placements in my “Big 3,” but I do have Mars in Leo in the 8^th house, so I will attempt here to shine some light into this dark and mysterious area of the zodiac.

Both Mars and Pluto can be considered as rulers of Scorpio. If you can find the courage to lift the crimson veil that protects this sign, you’ll find Pluto’s iron throne and the blood-soaked altar of Mars. Pluto represents the higher octave of Mars – the latter is more personal, while the former is more generational.

Scorpio is the crypt where the cosmos keeps its knives. Pluto is the tomb of the soul, the place where identities go to rot and regenerate. Its glyph—a circle above a crescent cradling a cross—is the chalice of poison transmuted into medicine. The circle symbolizes eternity. The crescent represents the lunar subconscious. The cross is the crucifixion on the wheel of matter.

Every Plutonic transit is a slow-motion execution; the ego is reminded of its subservience, and its screams are recorded in the akashic records. For example, when Pluto is conjunct your Moon, you do not “feel intense.” You drown in the amniotic fluid of your own past lives and choke on the umbilical cords of ancestral curses.

Then there’s Mars, the red assassin. In Aries, Mars is a bar fight—quick, reckless, cathartic. But in Scorpio, Mars is the surgeon who amputates your illusions with a scalpel dipped in scorpion venom. Which one is more dangerous?

The glyph of Scorpio—an M terminating in a stinger—is Mars’s member weaponized. The letter M is like the primordial waters of the womb. Then there’s a stinger that kills what it penetrates. Death begets life—rebirth.

But the highest manifestation of the sign comes via the eagle and ultimately the phoenix—Scorpio is ascended in this mythological creature, with its talons gripping the lightning bolt of an awakened will. But ascension is not merciful. Neither the eagle or phoenix forgives the scorpion. It remembers every crawl through the desert, and every self-inflicted wound.

Let’s think about the eighth house for a moment. This is Scorpio’s natural domain, the slaughterhouse of the chart. Here, inheritances are not gold but genetic trauma—the suffering of your ancestors manifesting as your own black mirror.

A lot of contemporary astrology sanitizes this part of the zodiac. “Pluto empowers” or “Scorpio transforms.” These are only half-truths. Pluto obliterates. Scorpio dissects. The transformation is not a serene butterfly gently emerging from a cocoon, but something much deeper, painful, and uncomfortable.

The color of Scorpio is not pure red, but the black-red of coagulated blood, the maroon of afterbirth. Its metal is plutonium, named after Pluto. It’s highly radioactive with a half-life of 24,000 years—long enough to outlast every civilization that pretends to understand it. Its stone is obsidian, a volcanic glass sharp enough to slice through the soul.

Mars in Scorpio does not fight fair, but aims to win at all costs. He’ll learn your secrets, weaponize your shame, and embarrass you in the shadows. Pluto in Scorpio—the generation born 1983-1995— experienced their collective initiation through a group beating from history. They are hesitant to trust others fully, and forgiveness is its own mountain. They archive every betrayal in the plutonium vault of their psyche, waiting for the precise moment to detonate.

Scorpio is like a zodiacal black hole. Hades. The underworld. Nothing that enters can escape, not light, not lies, and surely not the ego’s final scream (Hercules, Orpheus, and Odysseus are exceptions, but those are stories for another time).

By the way, be sure to check all your wealth before you board the boat to cross the River Styx – money has no value here. Ironically, this is what makes Pluto one of the wealthiest gods in the pantheon – the final debt collector. He never truly forgave his brother Jupiter for assigning him rulership of the subterranean world.

Scorpio and the eighth house are not a simple place, but a process. You enter with a name, a face, a story. You leave with a question: Who profits from my resurrection? The stars do not care. Pluto orbits in silence, while Mars sharpens his blade on the lead of your fear, and then, Scorpio stings the hand that dares to interpret it.

So yes, Nietzsche said that if you stare into the abyss, it stares back at you. As profound as much of his writing is, perhaps he forgot about those monsters in the first part of the quote. Or maybe, he didn’t stare into the abyss long enough, because if you do—you will become the abyss.